I have heard that bringing over filter media or water or rocks from another tank to start a new one off is called seeding. How do I know if it works? I pulled over the filter as well as some water that I syphoned off the rocks from my other healthy tank and put that along with a few fish in my new tank. How long do I need to wait until I know if it worked?

MoneyMitch

11-18-2009 10:09 PM

to properly "seed" a tank yo uneed to do the following,

Use media from a well established tank that has a constant reading of zero ammonia and 0 nitrItes.

when you transfer the media/rocks/substrate its best not to aggitate anything and simply place it from one tank to another.

you usually dont see a drop untill about a week or so after introducing the seeding media. of course when you place the seeded media on the new tank there needs to be a source of ammonia for the bac to eat or it will die off.

doughnut

11-18-2009 10:10 PM

I'd say that you know it worked when you have 0 ammonia and 0 nitrIte. test your water often and once those are down you should be cycled. if you brought the BB over from the already cycled tank it should speed it up id think.

doughnut

Edit: Mitch wins :-)

rsheets

11-19-2009 12:10 AM

It's hard to say because The levels in the new tank were 0 anyway because I just put fish in it. How long does it take to start showing ammonia?

1077

11-19-2009 12:51 AM

Is good idea to test it each day. Depending on how much seed material you used,and how many fish you added or other source of ammonia for bacteria to feed on, You may not see a rise in ammonia or nitrites. If you do,, simply perform a water change. as long as seed material was placed directly from existing tank into the new tank, and food (ie) ammonia is available,,the bacteria will continue to grow and the maturing process will be reduced accordingly. Could be a week, could be days. Just test the water daily and keep an eye on the fish for any signs of distress if fish are in the tank. don't use too many fish ,or too much food to feed the bacteria.